Archive for the ‘Chevrolet ZR1’ tag

Home at last from Scottsdale, which in January is to auctions what Philadelphia is to cheese steaks, or Paris is to berets. You can’t throw a rock without hitting one of the big white auction tents that pop up everywhere in this Southwestern town. We’re just going through our photos, and I thought I’d toss out a few interesting ones off the top.

This is from the “It’s a Small World After All” department. This 1963 Triumph TR4 once belonged to none other than our own editor-in-chief, Richard Lentinello, who recognized it immediately. Gooding got $44,000 for it. And no, Richard did not buy it back.

This was Gooding & Co.’s first year at Scottsdale, and they had a terrific selection of cars. Here’s one that we all would have liked to have driven home:

That, my friends, is not just any old scruffy French pickup, but a 1933 Delage D6-11, and it changed hands for $36,300.

Right-hand drive, too. Thanks to the Delage, I now know the French word for recap: it’s “recaoutchoutage.” Meanwhile, over at Barrett-Jackson….

Run for your lives! It’s Robosaurus, the World’s Biggest Entertainment Robot! Robosaurus’s powerful talons and 10-million-BTU breath are made for crushing and incinerating cars, tractors, monster trucks, surplus Air Force jets, and whatever else strikes has fancy. The 40-foot-tall robot sold at Barrett-Jackson for $575,000, but only after promising bidders, “If you take me home, I will not eat your collector cars.”

There were huge crowds around the first saleable Corvette ZR1, which was bought with a bid of $1 million. The proceeds benefited the United Way.

If you’re averse to crowds, then you’ll want to be far away from B-J’s tent during prime time on Saturday night. Believe it or not, there is a car somewhere up on the block.

When you think of James Brown, the late Godfather of Soul, is this the kind of car that comes to mind? No? Us either. But he did own this car, according to a written statement by his granddaughter. Selling price at B-J: $8,000.

This sweet Mercedes 6.9, with just 45,000 miles, was among the offerings at Silver, down the road in Fort McDowell.

That’s three auctions, and it’s just the tip of the iceberg. Check back later for more.